


JackCrutchie Coffee Shop AU

by CrutchieIsMySantaFe



Category: Newsies (1992), Newsies - All Media Types, Newsies!: the Musical - Fierstein/Menken
Genre: Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Angst with a Happy Ending, Coffee Shops, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Eventual Fluff, Everyone Is Gay, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Modern Era
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-16
Updated: 2016-10-16
Packaged: 2018-08-22 19:42:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,407
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8298082
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CrutchieIsMySantaFe/pseuds/CrutchieIsMySantaFe
Summary: Jack is an art student that works and a coffee shop, Crutchie is a med student. They meet, they fall in love, it's very gay.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Okay so I love modern au prompts and I think I got this one off of tumblr so please enjoy.

   It was early morning when Crutchie entered the small campus coffee shop. He must've been a strange sight, a disheveled, half-asleep boy with a crutch limping into a coffee shop at half past six in the morning. The incredibly attractive barista eyed him as he made his way up to the counter and placed his order. He must have been busy staring, but the barista’s annoyed voice soon shocked him back to reality.  
   “Hmm?” Crutchie mumbled in question.  
   “Your name?” Cute barista guy repeated.  
   “Oh. Crutchie.”  
   “You're kidding.” The barista, who's name tag introduced him as Jack, exclaimed, scribbling it down nonetheless.  
   While Jack set to work preparing the drink, Crutchie made his way over to a table and eased himself into a chair. Setting his crutch beneath his feet, he pulled a small book out of the pocket of his hoodie and began to read. He became so engrossed in the book, however, that he nearly fell out of his chair when Jack set a cup on the table in front of him.  
   “You didn't have to do that! I could have came and got it.” Crutchie stated, giving the brown haired barista a reproachful look.  
   “Calm down. I was comin’ over here anyway.” Jack reassured him.  
   “Why.” Was all Crutchie said. He didn't like people pitying him, and cute baristas were no exception.  
   “Business is slow, we're the only ones here, and you're cute. I thought I would come over and talk.”  
   Crutchie was sure he was blushing quite violently.  
   “Well...what do you wanna talk about.”  
  “Is your name really Crutchie?” Jack asked, politely curious, but added, “You don't have to answer that.”  
   “It's fine. And no, Crutchie is not the name my mother gave me. That would be unfortunate. It just turns out that people are very observant.”  
   “And you don't mind?” Jack asked. He seemed to actually care what Crutchie thought, despite them just meeting.  
   “Not at all.”  
   “Crutchie.” Jack whispered.  
   “Yes?” The boy in question replied, knowing full well that Jack had just said the name for the sake of saying it.  
   “Um…” Jack flushed a little before thinking of something to say. “What's your major?”  
   “I'm a med student. How bout you?”  
   “Art.” Jack informed him.  
   Crutchie nodded in appreciation, but stopped short when he caught sight of the time.  
   “Damn! I'm almost late for class.” He retrieved his crutch and got to his feet, grabbing his cup and shoving some cash at Jack. “It was nice talking to you. Keep the change.”  
   With that, he half hobbled, half jogged out of the small building.  
   It wasn't until he was seated in the lecture hall ten minutes later that he saw what was written on the cup. There was a phone number, along with a note.

_You're cute. Call me sometime. If you want._  
_Xoxo Jack_


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Crutchie and Jack are in the coffee shop again. Someone's ex comes. It gets ugly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry for this chapter I love there characters and I don't mean to hurt them, it just happens. Sincerest apologies.

Jack was busy polishing coffee mugs when Crutchie walked in. It had become routine, the boy coming in before class drink coffee and talk to Jack. 

  “The usual?’ He called out, for they were the only two people in the building.

  “Yup. Thanks Jack.” He called back.

As Jack worked on the drink, Crutchie settled in his normal spot, a comfy armchair in the corner of the shop. Like he did every morning, he leaned his crutch against the side of the chair and pulled out a book. Just like every morning, Jack walked over with the drink and sat across from him, setting the cup on the table between them. Jack gazed at Crutchie for a moment, taking in his sandy brown hair, which fell over those bright blue eyes as he read.

  He looked up, closing his book when he noticed Jack.

  He started to say something, but stopped when a very angry someone burst through the door.

  That did not happen every morning.

  Crutchie froze. Instead of going to the counter to order, the man walked straight toward him, not stopping until he was about a foot away from them. 

  Jack, thoroughly confused, started to say something, but was cut off.

  “You!” The stranger snapped in an accusing tone, jabbing a finger at Crutchie.

  “Please go away…” He said in a small voice, standing up and backing away. Jack was surprised to see that he was shaking. 

  “Don’t tell me to go away, gimp!” Random dude replied, now almost yelling at Crutchie.

  Jack stepped between them. “Hold up dude. Who the hell are you?”

  The dude stepped forward in a menacing manner, pushing Jack out of the way. “I’m his ex. This doesn’t concern you, coffee boy.” He moved closer to the smaller boy. “What do you think you’ve been doing? Avoiding me?”

  “yes…” Came the timid reply. The light haired boy was staring at his shoes, still shaking.

  Ex stepped even closer, shoving Crutchie by the shoulder. He stumbled backwards, but didn’t fall over.

  “You aren’t allowed to avoid me!”

  “Dude!” Jack stepped in front of Crutchie once again. “Back off!”

  Instead of listening to Jack, the ex punched him in the gut, sending him backwards into a chair. 

  As Jack caught his breath, the dude took the opportunity to kick Crutchie’s crutch out from under him. Without the crutch for support, he fell to the ground. Apparently not satisfied with knocking him to the ground, the ex brought him foot to press down hard on Crutchie’s bad one. 

  He cried out in pain, tried to move away but found he couldn’t.

  “S-stop, please! That hurts!”

  “That’s the point, you lousy crip!” He shouted, pushing harder. 

  The smaller boy cried out again, this time louder.

  Jack stepped in front of Crutchie for the last time, punching the asshole of an ex-boyfriend square in the jaw before speaking in a firm voice. 

  “Leave. Now. Or I call the Police.”

 The threat must have done the trick, for the guy finally turned and walked out the door.

  The second he was gone Jack turned and sat down next to Crutchie, who was breathing hard and in obvious pain. After a moment’s hesitation, Jack brought a hand up to rub the other boy’s back, clasping his other hand over one of the pale, trembling ones.

  “Hey, hey, you’re fine. He’s gone, I’m right here, he can’t hurt you anymore. Take a deep breath, you’ll be fine. How bad did he hurt you? Is your leg okay?” He soothed, still rubbing circles on the other’s back.

  Crutchie took a deep breath, before nodding. “M’ fine. Just hurts…”

  “How about we get you into a chair?” Jack offered.

  He nodded again, letting Jack help him up and ease him into a chair.

  “You wanna talk about that?” Jack asked, kneeling next to the chair. “You don’t have to. “

  “It’s fine.” Another deep breath. “He was my ex. We only dated for….about a month. He was real nice at first, a gentleman. But after a while he got….um, possessive. And then he just started being mean, always knocking my crutch out from under me, calling me names that had to do with my leg. You heard him. I broke up with him once it got too bad to deal with, but he won’t give up. He kept texting and calling, so I blocked him. Guess the next step was literally hunting me down.” Deep breath again.

  “God, Crutch. I’m so sorry. Only a horrible person would do that. I mean, sometimes people are dicks, but I can’t believe he physically hurt you. Especially in public. That’s not okay. Do you want me to walk you to class? Or home? My shift’s almost over.” He stopped, realizing that he had been rambling. 

  “Um, yeah. I don’t have class today, so….yeah. Do you wanna come over? I don’t really have much to do, but we could watch netflix….. I don’t really want to be…..alone. He knows where I live, he could come after me….” It was Crutchie’s turn to ramble.

  “Of course I’ll come over. Just let me go grab my stuff. My shift’s over, Finch’ll take over for me. Be right back.” He squeezed the shaking hand before running off. 

  When he returned, he had the crutch, which he handed back to it’s owner. Said owner blushed as he stood and positioned it under his arm. Jack moved to take the hand that wasn’t operating the crutch. At this, they left, hand in hand and definitely not blushing a furious shade of red.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks so much for reading! Comments and kudos are very welcome.
> 
> Follow me on tumblr @this-is-crutchie-btw

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! Comments and kudos are welcome and appreciated.
> 
> Follow me on tumblr @this-is-crutchie-btw


End file.
